Connecticut western news., 1887-03-02
RECTOR AND MURDERER.
DOUBLE TRAGEDY IN ST. PAUL's
 RECTORY AT ENGLEWOOD.
The Rev. c. w. Ward shoots His Wife, Fires Q Shot at His Child, and Puts a Bullet into Himself.

Fires Shot at His Child. and Puts a Bullet into Himself.
 St. Paul's Episcopal Church in Englewood, N. J., is an ivy-covered structure, partly of l brown stone and partly of wood. It has 300 members, many of them wealthy. Adjoining | it is the rectory, pretty two-story and base is the Rev. Charles W. Ward. It is two years since he accepted the call to St. Pauls. He had previously been the assistant rector at St. l Thomas's Church, in New York City, and be- | fore that he had been in Bishop Young's dio- | cese in Florida. He was son of Capt. James | H, Ward, who commanded the Freeborn in the rebellion and was the first naval officer 10 be | killed in the war Previous to entering the | ministry the Rev. MT. Ward had studied to be sculptor under J. Q. A. Ward, who was also | & relative.
 Mir. Ward is of medium height stout, and he weighs 200 pounds He is of dark con- plexion and of an excitable nature. Although he was only 35 years old when he arrived at Englewood, he had already buried three wives In last August hc married for the fourth time. His bride was Miss Orpha Van. Schaick of Manlius, N. Y She is cousin of Jenkins Van Schaick of Albany, and belongs to one of the wealthiest families in the interior of New York. She is also sister of Mrs. Aaron J. Vanderpoel the wife of the New York law 1 yer. Mrs. Ward is of about the same age as | her husband According to the testimony of the members of his church, MT. Ward proved a very efficient rector. When he assumed the | management it's affairs were in somewhat l demoralized condition. He went to work with l great energy established bible classes for the young people, and attracted great many per | sons to the church by his enthusiasm and and the church was filled every Sunday. When he received call to Trinity Episcopal Church in Buffalo several months ago at salary of S6,000 he refused it. His salary in Englewood Is only 250O. He was frequent visitor at the many wealthy homes in Englewood, and | was supposed to be perfectly happy man. | Last Sunday Mir. Ward exchanged pulpits with the Rev. MT. Benjamin of Irvington. With his wife he went to Irvington on Satur- day afternoon and stayed there until Monday afternoon. He preached there twice. As had happened on several occasions, he was troubled with insomnia on Saturday night and Sunday | night. When he reached home he was com pletelv tired out. He sat up on Monday night in hls study, which adjoins the parlor on the ground floor. The other occupants of the house were Miss Bessie Hall, maiden cousin of his father, who had served as a guardian | to his children, during the periods when he was widower Mrs. Ward and the two child ren, Rosa, the cook, and Lena, the maid. MT. Tuesday, when his wife persuaded him to re re. He could not sleep, and remained in bed only short time. Mrs. Ward had just dropped into doze when she was awakened | by h1s saying: cannot sleep and want you to copy some let l ters for me-"
 He was very irritable, and in order to soothe him Mrs. Ward partly dressed and followed him into the study. She copied several letters for him and then went up stairs again. lie 1 followed her.
 q am going to take the first train to New York;" he said, " and am going to see my old family physician there:'
 Mrs. Ward dissuaded him from going. out at l once Miss Hall and the children, who had been awakened by the talk, came into the room and added their entreaties to Mrs. Ward g. The latter lay down on lounge in sma l hall room, while Mir. Ward paced the room nervously: He continued to argue about going l to New York; and Mrs. Ward, thinking he | might become quiet sooner if she said nothing, 1 turned away her face and refused to speak to him. The lounge was placed against the right | wall, which formed 8 partition between the small room and their sleeping room. Mrs. Ward lay on her right side, with her face to | the wall, and her eyes closed. The left side of her face was exposed. Her little daughter sat on the e1ge of the lounge, near her mother s feet. She was much frightened by the quarrel between her father and mother. The refusal of his wife to talk to him made Mir. Ward very angry. He left the room for moment and | then returned.
 ''If you don't speak to me-" he said, T will make you suffer for it.
 l She did not answer him.
 'I will give you just the time it takes me to ! count five" he continued "1f you don't change your mind Lefore then you will be sorry for it."
 Still Mrs. Ward gave him no answer. His anger was now so great that he spoke witt, difficulty.
 ssOne,' he began, 1.-two, three, four, fve" | As he uttered the last word there was 8 re- port, and Mrs. Ward felt stinging sensation | in her left cheek She started from the lounge I hnr1, ay,1 hn11 a | smoking revolver in his hand. The weapon then was pointed at the little girl, and before Mrs. Ward could interfere he had fired two shots at the child. Neither of these shots took effect. The child screamed ill terror and be- fore the father could fire again Mrs. Ward had grabbed her and had rushed with her into the bedroom. The child continued screaming, and Mrs. Ward placed her in bed, and tried to pacify her. All the time the blood was stream ing from the wound in her own cheek. It stained her night dress and the clothes she had hastily thrown on when she got up. It caught also in her hair, which was hanging loose. While she was busying herself with the little girl, and within two minutes after she had left the smaller room, she heard another pistol shot, followed by groan. She tried to go into the room and see what had happened, but her strength failed her, and she sank on the bed in swoon.
 The last shot had been firel by MT. Ward at himself. He stood over the sofa, facing the wall as he pulled the trigger. He had held the muzzle close to his right ear, and the ball entered the ear, glanced slightly downward and lodged in the skull He fell partly OH the lounge and partly on the floor, unconscious. .
 Miss Hall and the boy, who had been in the rear room had not heard the first shots, but the last one aroused them and both came rush. ing in. It was then twenty-five minutes of o'clock. The sight that met their eyes was appalling. MT. Ward lay on his right side with the blood flowing in a torrent from his right ear. An ever increasing pool blood was on the floor beside the lounge and the walls were l spattered, as were the furniture and the doors Mir. Ward was breathing heavily. Miss Hall and the boy ran into the bedroom and found Mrs. Ward lying unconscious in bed Little Bessie lay beside her crying. The servants who up to this time had been sleeping soundlv, were aroused. Miss Hall and Lena rushed partly dressed to Dr. Baldwin's house and
 'I found MT. Ward, the Doctor said, 'tly ing on the lounge ill pool of blood. He was partly dres ed, and semi-conscious | Everything was covered with blood. The re
 W ard was gasping. detected slight smell of liauor on his breath. I asked him if he had been drinking He said he had taken a little whiskey after the shooting. He talked | in an eccentric manner. lie asked about hls | wife several times.
 II hope she is not badly hurt" he said.
 Mrs Ward lay in the bed in her bedroom bleeding profusely. The bullet was embedded in her lower jaw bone."
 Drs. D. A. Curry, the family physician, ane H. M Banks were called in several hours late and consultation was held. They differed 1T opinion as to the probable result of Mr. Ward wound, Drs Baldwin and Curry fearing tha
 lockjaw would set in. Dr. Banks thought h
 might pull through. No attempt was made tt probe for the bullet, as the patient was suffer ing greatly from shock. Mrs. Wards condition
 was more favorable, although she was veal
 from loss of blood and from shock. The bulle l not oba6f for If fbo nh cit,ia ro